1. Field of the Art
The present disclosure relates to automated sample processing systems, and provides systems and methods that permit high-throughput specimen processing. Systems according to the invention may permit greatly increased sample processing throughput, decrease the number of samples that can not be assayed because of inadequate sample volume for assay detection, decrease the need for manual labor and allow for productive use of an operator's “walk-away time” during sample processing. Aspects of the disclosed systems may be used independently or in other systems.
2. Description of Related Art
Historically, biological samples being tested in the context of medical services have been processed using labor-intensive manual methods, or semi-automated methods requiring careful supervision by a laboratory technician. Such systems can be prone to operator error in many forms, such as improper testing (e.g., using an improper reagent or mis-reading the results), sample loss (e.g., spilling a sample), and identity loss (e.g., losing the patient name or associating the sample with the incorrect patient). While semi-automated methods may help reduce labor costs and operator error, many automated systems are cumbersome to use. For example, many “automated” systems are actually only semi-automated, and may require labor-intensive pre-processing steps to transfer the input samples into a format, such as a particular sample container, that the machine can accept. Others perform a subset of processing steps but require an operator to manually perform the others. It has also been found that existing semi-automated systems may lack safety controls, require frequent stopping for service, operate inefficiently or slowly, or have other problems or shortcomings.
There exists a need in the art for alternative automated and semi-automated processing systems, processing systems that can accept samples in various formats, and processing systems that can simultaneously process different kinds of samples. There also is a need for alternative sample processing methods. There also is a need for alternative sample processing equipment and sub-systems that may be used to assist with sample processing tasks in fully-automated, semi-automated and manually-operated systems.